The Solution

HINT: Examine the Stamp for Potential clues!

< outright  HINTS >

The crime takes place on a steamship sailing from Colombo, Ceylon, to Male, the capital of the Maldives. In the year our mystery takes place, 1948, these countries were under British rule, as was Burma, the country from which this stamp originated (Scott catalog 2N50).

The characters printed within the white border at the bottom of the stamp are a clue that this stamp was issued during the Japanese occupation (1942-45), in this instance, on October 1, 1943.

Discovery of the stamp's origin, the vital clue clutched in the hand of the victim, Geoffrey Bullock, would naturally turn Inspector Greavy's suspicions to Mr. Kip Templar.

Templar was interned by the Japanese, as was Sir Geoffrey, beginning in 1943 for a period of about twelve and a half months, and 12-1/2 is the Perforation for the stamp in question. A further clue is provided by the subject of the stamp, The Watch Tower of Mandalay Palace. Templar and the treacherous Sir Geoffrey were imprisoned near by. This is a clue that points away from Mrs. Bullock as the murderer (despite the fact that her name is Violet, the color of the stamp!) since she met her husband-to-be in Rangoon. Given Mr. Templar's strong motive for revenge, it is his confession Inspector Greavy expects to hear.

Though there are a number of clues that would seem to point to Mr. Kandi as the murderer, they are red herrings. Mr. Kandi's desire for independence became fulfilled, in time. Although Ceylon attained independence within the British Commonwealth in 1948, it was not until 1972 that it emerged as a nation state of its own, under the name of Sri Lanka.

Burma has experienced a troubled history since it obtained independence from Britain in 1948. Known as the Union of Mayanmar since 1989, it has remained under one-party military rule for much of its modern history. The efforts of 1995 Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi and her compatriots in the Burmese League for Democracy are slowly bringing about change, as well as bringing Burma out of its long, self-imposed isolation.